Intrigued
by QueenZakynthos
Summary: Scorpius Malfoy has always had a strange fascination with Rose Weasley, but through some tacit agreement, they've never really gotten to know each other. Now, as Heads they slowly learn more about each other and about themselves in the process.
1. Chapter 1

Scorpius was not having a good day.

He overslept and missed the slytherin quidditch practice, at which Albus was still mad at him for.  
He slipped on the bathroom floor and hurt his hip in his hurry to get to class.  
Upon reaching said class, he realized he forgot his transfiguration assignment –the whole reason he overslept in the first place.

"No paper, Mr. Malfoy? Well, I guess I'll have to take off points for tardiness. Please ensure that paper is on my desk by this afternoon, understood?", said McGonnagal sternly yet not altogether unkindly.

 _Yeah_ , he thought, _this is not a good day for me._

He trudged off to the great hall for lunch and managed to spill his ink and trip along the way. By now, Scorpius was in a horrible mood. On entering the great hall and seeing Rose Weasley suck face with Nathan White however, he changed his mind.

 _Now, I'm in a horrible mood._

Rose Weasley. Cousin of his best friend, Albus Potter, Rose Weasley. Daughter of war heroes- Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley- Rose Weasley. The only object of his romantic affections for the past 6 years- Rose Weasley.

Scorpius swore under his breath before aking his seat next to Albus. "Why do they have to do that in public? Some of us actually want to eat.", he bit out.

"Oh, is little scorpy jealous? Does he wanna give Rose a big smoochie? Is that why he didn't make it to quidditch practice today?, said Albus, obviously deciding that embarrassing Scorpius won out on staying mad at him. Albus Potter was the only one who knew about his crush on Rose. He never told him but he just figured it out.

Scorpius flushed lightly, but regaining his composure he spat,"You do realize I could have any bird I want, right?". He ran his hand through his hair and winked at a couple of 3rd year girls seated nearby, who promptly burst into giggles."You see, Al?", he grinned.

Al, on the other hand looked decidedly unimpressed. "How about Rose? She'd never fall for you. In fact, I'm willing to bet on it." Smiling deviously, he added,"Not money. The loser streaks through the great hall singing the hogwart's anthem at the end of year feast, deal?"

Scorpius Malfoy, Head Boy of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry, was sorely tempted to take Al up on that offer, if only to wipe that smug look on his face. However, he was raised well. And being raised well, he knew that his mother would ,without inhibition , disown him completely if she found out he was attempting to play with any girl's affections. Astoria Malfoy was not someone to be trifled with.

"No deal", he grumbled under his breath shooting Al a dark look just as Louis Weasley came and leaped into his lap.

"Awwww, Scorpykins, why are you so sad? Is it because you missed me too much?", he cried out in a falsetto while dramatically draping himself over Scorpius, to the general amusement of nearby students.

"Of course not Louis, obviously he's building the courage to ask me out", declared Ethan Wood, Louis' partner in crime, determined not to be outdone by Louis. The duo had been striving to take the spot of James Potter and Fred Weasley as chief troublemakers ever since they graduated.

Scorpius used to their antics just grunted. "Get lost Louis," said Albus, earning himself a thump on the back of his head and a missing sandwich from his plate as the idiot twins took off for class laughing maniacally.

"I guess we should be heading out to Potions too",said Scorpius hauling his bag and dragging a muttering Albus along with him.

Later on in Potions class, Scorpius, staring at the back of Rose Weasley's head and at her wonderful,wonderful curls-and he should know-he spent the last 6 years memorizing it- wondered _would she really fall for me?_

He abruptly shook his head and sat up , the idiot twins' idiocy was highly contagious.


	2. Chapter 2

5 am

Rose Weasley woke up to the same lilting music she did every day.

"mmhhmm", she sighed sleepily as she reached for the little swallow figurine that was singing and flying around. Her dad made it for her when she was 4 and she kept it still as a reminder of stroked its wings mindlessly for a bit before letting it go.

Rose then lazily rolled out of bed and into the bathroom. Once done with emptying her bladder and brushing her teeth, she grabbed the book she was in the middle of reading and crept out into the Heads' balcony. Curled up in her favourite sweater amidst the morning chill in her pillow and blanket fort, she made a mental note to end things with Nathan. She'd been trying but she couldn't see herself wanting to spend any more time with him.

 _It all started because the idiot twins' bet I couldn't get a bloke, anyway_ , she thought uncharitably, flipping a page.

7 am

Rose was so immersed in her book she lost track of time. Only when she heard Scorpius whistling to himself around their common room did she realize she was late. "Fuck", she cursed.

In a mad dash to reach her bedroom she didn't look at where she was headed and 'BAM!'.

She hit her foot against the side of the couch. "Fuck, fuck, fuckity fuck fuck", she cursed as she hopped around on one foot clutching the other for dear life.

Scorpius let out a loud burst of laughter behind her, his broad shoulders shaking with mirth.  
"This isn't funny", Rose huffed.  
" I beg to differ. You would too if you saw yourself hopping around like an angry chicken and cursing like a sailor.", said Scorpius, before he burst into another bout of laughter.  
Rose found herself smiling at him without making any conscious decision to do so, " It still wasn't very nice of you. I could have been severely injured you know."  
"You're right. I'm a right git, I am. Are you experiencing any severe pain?", he said, still grinning widely.  
"No, I'll let you know if I do", Rose said softly, slightly transfixed by the sight of the smiling Head Boy.

As if noticing the change, Scorpius suddenly straightened up," Right then, I'm off to the Great Hall. Have to meet Albus…breakfast..quidditch, I'll see you around yeah?" he muttered before he looked her in the eye with his blue, blue eyes and waved goodbye.

"yeah, I've got to get ready too.", said Rose, moving to her room and feeling slightly bereft as Scorpius left.

 _I wonder why we've always kept our distance_ , Rose wondered, a sudden image of his insanely handsome smile flashing before her. _Nathan never smiled like that_ ,she thought, before she caught sight of the clock- "Fuck."


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a week since Scorpius Malfoy saw Rose Weasley- Head Girl and all around dignified person- stub her toe on the couch and curse like a sailor. Since the encounter, he noticed she seemed more aware of his presence. Or maybe he was just reading too much into things and projecting his stupid crush on her.

 _I'm a stupid git. I've got to stop mooning over her_ \- he thought, walking to the Herbology greenhouse, just as Al came and slung his arm over his shoulder saying," Hey mate, why were you muttering to yourself like a nutter just now?"

 _Great. Now, everyone thinks the Head Boy is a loon,_ thought Scorpius replying drily, "Says the only 7th year bloke willing to not only admit his penchant for pygmy puffs but also petition to make them the mascot of Hogwarts." The whole school knew of Albus' obsession with pygmy puffs. It had raised more than a few eyebrows- and even merited a column on the gossip rag Witch Weekly.

"Hey! Pygmy Puffs are wonderful creatures. And I almost won that petition. The girls were all for it.", said Albus with a wink. Scorpius just rolled his eyes, knowing more than a few girls gushed about how sensitive and how in touch with his feelings Albus was. Git.

They filed into the greenhouse , taking a seat at the back. "Today I'll be assigning groups for your end of term project. And, No, none of you can object to my decision," announced Professor Neville to a loud round of groans and protests."There are three members in a group such that your collective brains are enough to do well",continued Neville genially before he started rattling off the names.

"Albus Potter, Aditya Patel and Jessica Green"

"Judy Campbell, Joseph …."

Scorpius zoned out for a while watching the devil's snare moving too close to him for comfort before he heard,"…pius Malfoy and Cindy Williams."

 _No, No, No, No way. This cannot be happening,_ thought Scorpius as he recoiled at the thought of having to spend the entire year working with the crazy bird. Cindy Williams was obsessed with Scorpius ever since he saved her from drowning in the lake two years ago. She even tried bribing his roommates for strands of his hair and his toothbrush. Which sane person does that?

Even now, she was making a beeline straight for him, like a predator with her eyes set on her prey. _Why did the slytherins have to have herbology with the gryffindors?_ , thought Scorpius raising his eyes heavenward hoping for a miracle.

No such luck.

"Scorpius! Can you believe it? Now, we get to spend an entire year working together. Isn't that just perfect?", cried Cindy shrilly, latching on to his arm for dear life.

"Uh-huh….Yeah….sounds like fun, "muttered Scorpius trying to pry her arm off his in vain. For such a little thing- 5'2"- if that-she was surprisingly strong. He caught sight of Albus trying not to laugh at his plight and failing. Traitor.

Just then he heard Rose's voice to his right," So, I guess we'll all be working together then." She was eyeing Cindy's stranglehold strangely.

"What?", managed Scorpius stupidly.

"Neville called out our names? The three of us have to work together? Ring any bells?", she bit out, a tad impatiently.

"That's all right, Scorpius. Don't worry. She won't come between us spending time together.", Cindy said smiling brightly at Scorpius before narrowing her eyes at Rose.

Rose, to her credit, just ignored her antics and said, "We'll have to decide on a time and place to meet weekly for the project if we want it done in time. I was thinking the Head's common room on every Friday at 6?"

"NO!", cried Scorpius," We can't have it at the Head's Common room. Nobody else is allowed there. Headmistress McGonnagal's orders remember?" He sent pleading eyes Rose's way, hoping she'd understand the danger she was putting him in.

Apparently not. "But..", she began to say before Scorpius cut her off," Excuse us Cindy. I just have to talk to Rose for a moment…umm…Urgent Head's business… I just remembered…sorry." He grabbed Rose and pulled her off to the side,"What do you think you're doing? You can't let that nutter within 100 feet of my common room, forget about giving her the password and inviting her in. She'll never leave.", he whisper-shouted at her.

"Let go of my arm", said Rose coldly. Scorpius looked down and let it go in a hurry, immediately turning sheepish, "oh…sorry..I-..just..she",he stammered before deciding to shut up.

"Okay, now tell me why you're so freaked out by her. She seems nice, pretty too", said Rose evenly, looking Scorpius in the eye.

Scorpius looked back at her like she just sprouted four horns and was covered in pustules. He made a strangled noise in the back of his throat.

Albus came bounding over to join them. "So mate, I overheard everything and decided to help you out.", he said taking charge of the situation for Scorpius-who was still in shock. "Rose, Cindy Williams is Scorp's living is a stalker. Crazy bird fancies herself in love with him. All because he had to be all noble and save her from drowning. She has a shrine dedicated to him and is head of his fan club-which really does exist by the way. She would keep vials of his blood in storage if she could. If you'd pay attention to all the gossip Louis heaps on you, then you'd know this by now."

"You're serious?", Rose said with the appropriate look of horror on her face. Mutely, Scorpius nodded. Then, clearing his throat and finding his voice he pleaded,"let's keep the meetings at the library. Far,far away from my bedroom. And she'll have to keep quiet there so our hearing will be intact."

Rose grinned widely at that,"Her voice is a little high, isn't it?". "A little?", replied Scorpius,grinning back at her and noticing how rare it was to see the Head Girl so carefree. _She should smile more often,_ he thought ,quickly followed by, _Merlin, she's gorgeous._

The moment was broken by Cindy clearing her throat obnoxiously,"Ahem."

Scorpius cursed and headed back but not before Rose flashed another smile at him. _Maybe this won't be so bad after all_ , he thought grinning.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been a week since Rose dumped Nathan White and to say he wasn't taking it well was a huge understatement. He'd taken to following Rose around insisting their relationship could be fixed and if she just opened her eyes, she'd see how great they were together. That last part almost earned him a jelly legs jinx- Rose did not take kindly to her intelligence being doubted.

Scurrying away as fast as she could while trying to seem like she wasn't fleeing the scene, she ran into Lily-"Oh thank Merlin! Lily, you've got to help me. Cause a distraction so Nathan leaves me alone."

"It'll cost you."

"Name your price."

"Your entire chocolate frog collection and 2 boxes of sugar quills."

"Half my collection and none of the sugar quills."

"Done. I would've done it for free, you know. I never understood what you saw in that ponce anyway", Lily flounced away towards Nathan, discreetly charming his clothes and hair to change colours every second. If there was one thing Nathan was, it was vain. He prided himself on his appearance, one look at his outfit and he rushed towards his dorms to remedy the situation,leaving in his wake, Lily cackling maniacally at her success.

Having watched from behind an alcove, Rose sighed with relief and slowly came out of her hiding place, immediately being accosted by Al. "Are you behind my sister's current demented state? I really don't want to write home to my parents informing them that their lily-bug is a psychopath and we'll have to permanently house her in Mungo's."

"Please, she's her Daddy's little girl, I doubt anything you say is going to change that."

"Ouch, how you wound me, Rosie darling. Here I was thinking you're my favourite cousin."

Rose ignored him, having spotted a harried looking Scorpius coming her way, with Cindy hot on his heels. She felt a twinge of annoyance towards the girl.

Refusing to acknowledge why that was, Rose called out to them,"Scorpius, Cindy, were you starting our project without me?"

"Of course not, Rose", replied Cindy, flashing Rose a predatory smile," we were discussing things of a more… personal nature."

Scorpius' smile turned strained and he shot pleading eyes Al's way.

"Cindy, I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to join the Pygmy Puffs Protection Soceity", cried Al steering the conversation away,"Scorpius is all about the pygmy puffs, he was in tears the other day at some of their living conditions. He's such a sensitive soul. You seem like you'd be too."

"Of course, I always knew you were sensitive but misunderstood. Don't you worry, I'll support your cause." Cindy beamed at Scorpius .

"Well then, you've got to come with me. I've got the pamphlets, badges, donation box…"Albus steered her away while she shot him disgruntled looks.

Scorpius gave a huge sigh of relief at their departure, earning a chuckle from Rose,"you really are scared of her, aren't you?"

"Terrified", replied Scorpius honestly.

* * *

For the rest of the day they couldn't stop noticing each other.

He noticed how she got really frustrated during Ancient Runes and started chewing her lip violently while tapping her foot.

She noticed how he was flawless at transfiguration , transforming his gerbil to a kitten on the first try. And how he looked so cute holding it.

He noticed how she pulled her hair free and tied it back up again and couldn't stop himself from staring at her long, smooth neck.

She noticed how he pulled up his sleeves in potions, while standing next to her, exposing his forearms as he stirred his potion. And how his muscles flexed slightly.

In fact, she was still dazed by it, when she added an extra phoenix hair to her sleeping draught. Her potion immediately started bubbling and turning purple. Just before it could explode, Scorpius tried to push her away, only managing to get it on both of them instead.

The last thing either of them noticed was a slight purple haze before they promptly lost consciousness.


	5. Chapter 5

For the next several hours after the accident, Rose drifted in and out of consciousness. She was drowsy and kept getting flashes of blond hair, blue eyes and strong forearms.

Scorpius drifted in and out of consciousness with brief flashes of vibrant red hair and a bubbling purple cauldron.

When both of them finally came to, they were in the hospital wing, situated next to each other. Madam Promfrey came rushing over to fuss over them.

"I have seen a great many stupid accidents over the years, but for 7th years to mess up a sleeping drought this badly...no concern for safety... sending me to an early grave", still muttering to herself, she gave them each a toxic yellow colored potion to drink, "Drink this and you can leave, I need the beds for the latest quidditch accidents, honestly, why they even let children play that sport..."

Promfrey bustled away and Rose chanced a glance at Scorpius, who looked a little rough around the edges but fine for the most part. He was looking at his potion with extreme distrust.

Rose chuckled. He glanced up at the sound, " Hey, you okay now?"

"Yeah. Why did you jump in the way, you should've known better than that ",Rose asked, suddenly desperately wanting to know.

"Well, I couldn't just stand there and encourage your suicidal tendencies", he grinned," besides, my mother would have my head on a platter if she knew I just stood there and watched a girl upend a cauldron on herself without trying to get her out of the way."

He was just being nice. He was just being nice. She chanted to herself, unexpectedly disappointed for some reason.

" Hey! I was not suicidal, just a tad distracted", she managed to reply right before she blushed hotly on remembering why she'd been distracted.

"Well, since we're stuck having to drink this foul potion, want to do it on 3?"said Scorpius.

"Okay, one...two...Three", said Rose as both of them upended their potion into their mouths, swallowed and proceeded to make retching noises.

"That tasted worse than Hugo's socks would in liquid form", said Rose, looking firmly disgusted and crinkling her nose with distaste.

Scorpius couldn't help but find that adorable and valiantly resisted the urge to tweak her cute little button nose.

"Shall we leave?", he asked. "We probably have a lot of work to catch up on."

"Oh merlin", cried Rose dramatically, "we're doomed" as she trudged out of the hospital wing and towards their dorm with great reluctance. Scorpius just followed her with a slight smile playing on his lips as he looked at the feisty witch.

…...

On the way to their dorm, Rose and Scorpius noticed that the entire college seemed strangely abuzz. Everyone was huddled in groups, excitedly whispering and giggling to themselves. They were passing by a group of hufflepuff third years, when one of them excitedly screamed," I cannot believe he's actually coming".

Both of them looked at each other questioningly, feeling strangely mystified about this unusual turn of events. They walked into their dorm to see a message from Headmistress McGonnagal ,asking to see them as soon as possible, placed on their table.

"What do you think it's about?", asked Rose.

" I know as much as you do", he shrugged.

Both of them trudged up to McGonnagal's cabin, still feeling slightly drowsy. "Phoenix", muttered Scorpius to the gargoyles, before entering alongside Rose. "Ah, you're here. Please have a seat.", McGonnagal gestured to the two empty seats in front of her.

Sitting down, both of them looked toward her expectantly. "The reason I called you here is because as Hogwart's representatives, both of you as well as the Prefects are in charge of organizing today's event. So, please ensure all the necessary work is taken care of."

"Excuse me Professor, but what event are you talking about?" Rose asked.

"I assumed the both of you would've heard by now. Hogwarts isn't well-known for keeping secrets.", her eyes alight, she continued,"Harry Potter has agreed to take a special class for the 7th years of Hogwarts about what really happened in the second wizarding world 's arriving in two hours."

Suddenly, all the whispers and giggling in the halls made complete sense.


	6. Chapter 6

Rose's mind was going a million miles a minute. Only 2 hours to prepare for a class which has to seat all the 7th years. Not to mention, they'll undoubtedly be a lot of other students trying to sneak their way in. Scorpius, beside her, was strangely quiet as they went about their preparations.

"You're okay with keeping it in the great hall, right?", she asked, checking to see if he was listening.

"Yeah sure. That's a great idea.", he mumbled distractedly, not meeting her eyes.

A tiny blossom of hurt grew in her chest at his dismissiveness, but she brushed it off as she went away to inform the prefects and get things done.

The next two hours was a frantic blur, with all the tables in the great hall being pushed together to make room, the schedules being rearranged, extra wards put up to keep out the younger students and informing all the 7th years and dealing with all their endless questions.

By the time Uncle Harry arrived, Rose was glad that everybody shut up. Taking a seat beside Al to the side, she watched Uncle Harry enter. He shot her and Al a grin and then made his way to the front of the class.

"Where's scorp?", whispered Al.

"Huh, I don't know, I've been too busy to notice", said the head girl craning her neck to spot him in the crowd, "Oh, there he is, at the back, behind everyone. I wonder where he was."

Scorpius looked straight ahead resolutely with a blank expression. Al looked almost anxious as he gazed at Scorpius, an expression that looked foreign on Al's usually jovial features. Just before Rose could question him, Harry spoke up.

"The second wizarding world war , although long since over with, still covers a large aspect of our lives. Most students here have family members who fought on one side or the other of the war. And as such, Professor McGonnagal called me here today, to address the issues stemming from the war. I've heard some of you feel compelled to carry around an antagonism or hate towards the children of the people who fought on the side opposite to your parents. Our generation fought a war to make a world where blood is not an issue. A world where nobody feels targeted based on things beyond their control, things they did not choose. Seeing as how, all of you are the future we worked towards, you are in charge of shaping our world. To make it safer. Better. If you continue to let blood status define us, if you continue to hold grudges based on the past, then your parents' struggle was in I know it's hard not to let it become personal. Hard to know that your classmate's family killed one member of yours. But I also know that it is possible to not let all that hate eat you up from the inside. You don't need to carry scars from a battle that was never yours."

The following three hours had everyone signing a secrecy pact, before sharing their stories of the war. How it shaped their lives. How they carried resentment around.

* * *

When they were nearing the end of the first hour, Rose noticed Scorpius wasn't present. She shrugged, assuming he'd be back. However, by the time Harry wrapped up, he was still nowhere to be seen. All the 7th years were subdued and quiet, filled with a strange purpose and energy that comes after finally putting in words what they all carried around but kept unspoken.

Rose went looking for Scorpius. She finally found him in the Room of before she could step inside, she saw that he wasn't alone. Al was with him.

It was then she noticed the whole scene. The room was filled with glass and mirrors, all smashed to the ground or broken. Broken by Scorpius, she realized, noticing his hunched, deathly pale figure crouched on the ground, with his fist bleeding and filled with shards.

He didn't seem to notice the pain. He just stared straight ahead with raw pain in his eyes, muttering, "Sorry, I'm so sorry". The kind of pain Rose had never seen. Al was removing the glass, and healing his hand with his wand, looking close to tears. Al said, earnestly in a low voice, "Scorpius, none of this is your fault. It happened before you were even born. I know you, and I know that you aren't ever going to make the same choices your father or grandfather did. Your choices are what set you apart. You hear me?"

Scorpius' eyes slowly focused on Al's. Languidly, he nodded, seeming to come to his senses. "I'm sorry for putting you through this, mate", he whispered brokenly. "I'll kick your skinny pale arse if you apologize again", quipped Al, helping Scorp to his feet.

Rose turned away from the scene and fled. She ran till she reached an alcove and cocooned herself there. It was only then that she noticed her cheeks were wet, she was crying.

Wiping her face, she remembered the broken look on Scorpius' . Her heart breaking for him all over again, this time, she let the tears fall.


End file.
